The Blessed Buddha once said:Bhikkhus, if one should call anything a heap of the Disadvantage, thenit is these five hindrances, that one could rightly call this. For these areverily only one heap of evil Disadvantage, these five mental hindrances...What five?

1: The Mental Hindrance of Desire for Sensing...2: The Mental Hindrance of Aversion & Ill-Will...3: The Mental Hindrance of Lethargy & Laziness…4: The Mental Hindrance of Restlessness & Regret…5: The Mental Hindrance of Doubt & Uncertainty…

If one were to call anything a mass of the Disadvantage, then it is about those five hindrances, that one could rightly say this. Since indeed arethese five mental hindrances an immense stockpile of damage and loss!!!

However:If, Bhikkhus, one were to call anything a heap of Advantage, then it is these Four Foundations of Awareness, that one could rightly call this.For these are verily a perfect accumulation of sole Advantage, that is, these Four Foundations of Awareness... What four?

1: Awareness of the Body merely as a transient & compounded form..2: Awareness of Feeling just as a passing reactive sensation.3: Awareness of Mind only as a group of habitual & temporary moods..4: Awareness of Phenomena simply as momentary mental states..

If, Bhikkhus, one were to call anything an Accumulation of Advantage, then it is these Four Foundations of Awareness, that one could rightly call this. For these are verily a pure & massive abundance of Advantage, that is, these Four Foundations of Awareness... !!!

The Blessed Gotama Buddha once explained:Bhikkhus & friends, imagine a single floating ring drifting in the great oceans! The Northern, Southern, Western and Eastern winds drive it here and there... Imagine also a blind turtle, which surfaces only once every hundred years...What do you think, Bhikkhus, would that blind turtle by chance often dive right up under this randomly drifting single ring & insert its neck in the hole? If it ever would at all, Sir, it would only happen by an exceedingly rare chance! Similarly, Bhikkhus it is by an exceedingly rare chance that one becomes human; it is by an extraordinarily rare chance that a Well-Come-&-Gone-One, an Arahat, a Perfectly Self-Enlightened Buddha arises in this world; and it is thus also by an exceptionally rare chance that the Dhamma and Discipline explained by this Tathagata shines forth in this world and saves it from Barbarism. Bhikkhus: You have now gained that precious & rare human state, a Tathagata, an Arahat, a Perfectly Self-Enlightened Buddha has arisen in the world, & the Dhamma and Discipline proclaimed by the Tathagata shines out in this world... Therefore, Bhikkhus & friends, an exertion should be made Now to understand: All This is Suffering; This Greedy Craving is the sole Cause of all Suffering; No Craving is the End of Suffering; The Noble 8-fold Way Ends all Suffering, Therefore should effort to fathom these 4 Noble Truths be made NOW!

Comment:It is now or never. May a sense of urgency save many from the ruin of neglect!

At Savatthi the blessed Buddha said:Friends, horrible are gain, honour, fame, name and praise! As if they cut through the outer skin, then through the inner skin, then through the flesh, then through the sinews, then right through to the bone! Having cut through the bone, they reach the marrow itself. So terrible indeed friends, are gain, honour, fame, name and praise... They are as if splattering pig bile over a mad dogs nose, bitter, vile, wicked, tricky, obstructive to achieving this incomparable security from domination! Friends, I have known of a certain person here whose mind I penetrated with my own mind and have thereby realized: This venerable one would not tell a deliberate lie even for the sake of his own life! Yet, sometime later, I see him telling a deliberate lie, because his mind was overwhelmed & obsessed by gain, honour, fame, name & praise... So destructive, friends, are gain, honour, fame, name and praise, so bitter, so vile and blocking any achievement of matchless security from bondage. Therefore, friends, you should train yourselves thus: "We will leave behind any arisen gain, honour, fame, name & praise and we will not let the arisen gain, honour, fame, name and praise remain obsessing or consuming our minds Thus should you train yourselves...!!!"

The Blessed Buddha once explained:And what, Bhikkhus, is then this simple indifference of the flesh? There are these five strings of sense-pleasure. What five? Visible forms experienceable by the eye ... Hearable sounds experienceable by the ear ...Smellable odours experienceable by the nose ...Tastable flavours experienceable by the tongue ...Touchable objects experienceable by the body ...That all are attractive, captivating, desirable, irresistible, lovely, charming, tempting, pleasing, sensually enticing, seductive, alluring, and tantalizing!These are the 5 strings of sense-pleasure. The indifference that arises from these 5 strings of sense-pleasure when bored, is simply indifference of the flesh...

And what, Bhikkhus, is the equanimity, which is not of this world?With the leaving behind of both pleasure and pain, & with the prior fading away of both joy & sorrow, one enters & dwells in the 4th jhana absorption, which is an entirely stilled mental state of utter awareness, purified by the equanimity of neither-pain-nor-pleasure. This is called the equanimity, which is not of this world!

Finally, what is serenity beyond the equanimity, which is not of this world? When a bhikkhu, whose mental fermentations are eliminated, reviews his calmed mind, which is liberated from all lust, freed from all hatred, and released from uncertainty, then there arises a transcendental serenity... This is the serenity beyond that equanimity, which is not of this world!

THE SUPREME GIFTThe gift of Dhamma surpasses all other gifts.The taste of Truth excels every other taste.The joy of Understanding exceeds any other joy.The elimination of Craving overcomes, quenches & triumphs over all pain, all sorrow, and all suffering ...Dhammapada 354

Be understanding to your perceived enemies.Be loyal to all your good friends. Be strong enough to face the changing world each day. Be weak enough to know you cannot do everything alone. Be generous to those who need your help. Be frugal with that you need yourself. Be wise enough to know, that you do not know everything. Be foolish enough to believe in the unknown miracle. Be willing to share your joys, resources and riches. Be willing to share and bear the sorrows of others. Be a leader, when you see the path others may have missed. Be a follower, when you are shrouded by the mists of uncertainty. Be the first to congratulate an opponent, who succeeds. Be the last to criticize a colleague, who fails. Be sure where your next step will fall, so that you will not tumble. Be sure of your final destination, in case you are going the wrong way. Be loving to those, who love you, and also towards those who don't... Be friendly to those, who do not love you since then they may change. Above all: Be AWARE!

The Blessed Buddha once said:If, Bhikkhus and Friends, anyone wishes: Oh, may I in this very life be able to eliminate the mental fermentations, and thereby come to fully experience mental release, release through understanding, by directly realizing it and make it my own! Then he should practise to perfect morality (sila), be devoted to mental tranquillity (samatha), not neglect the mental absorptions, cultivate insight (vipassana), and often frequent remote & peaceful places for training!

The Blessed Buddha once said:Some priests postulate this as the way going upwards: "Get up early and walk facing east. Do not avoid a pit, or a cliff abyss, or a stump, or a thorny place, or a village or a cesspool! You should expect death wherever you fall. Thus, good man, with the breakup of the body, after death, you will be reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world." This the praxis of the priests, Bhikkhus, is a foolish & stupid way, since it does neither lead to revulsion, to disillusion, nor to ceasing, to peace, to direct knowledge, to Enlightenment, nor to Nibbana!However, Bhikkhus, I will explain the very way Going Upwards in the Noble One's Discipline, that way, which leads to utter revulsion, to disillusion, to ceasing, to peace, to safe knowledge, to Enlightenment, to Nibbana: Any Noble Disciple possesses a sure confirmed confidence in the Buddha thus: "Worthy, and perfectly self-Enlightened is the Buddha!"He possesses confirmed confidence in the Dhamma thus: "Perfectly formulated is the Buddha-Dhamma, visible right here and now.."He possesses confirmed confidence in the Sangha thus: "Perfectly training is this Noble Sangha of the Buddha's disciples..."He also possesses the purity of morality esteemed by the Noble Ones: Unbroken, untorn, unspotted, freeing, praised by the clever, natural, leading to concentration.This, Bhikkhus, is the way going upwards, which leads to utter revulsion, to disillusion, to ceasing, to Peace, to direct knowledge of Enlightenment, and Nibbana!

The Blessed Buddha explained the flowing transience of existence as void:Suppose a man with good sight observed the many bubbles on the Ganges river as they drifted along, by carefully watching and examining them all.Then after he had carefully examined them, they would appear to him asempty, evanescent, and unsubstantial. In exactly the same way does the Bhikkhu observe all the material phenomena, all feelings, all perceptions, all mental constructions, & all states of consciousness, whether they be past, present, or future, far or near. By carefully watching, analysing &examining them all, they appear to him as empty, void, and without a core...Source (edited extract) SN 22:95

Comment:If feeling a bit nausea, or dizziness, or fear, when rigorously attempting to comprehend egolessness, then one is going in the right direction...Worth noticing is that one cannot ever loose a self that never was therein the first place...!

The cream of Teachings are The 4 Noble Truths & the 37 producers of Enlightenment.The cream of Recipients are The Noble Disciples capable of understanding & praxis.The cream of Holy Lives is that lived while developing the Noble 8-fold Path.

Vap Poya day is the full-moon of October. This holy day celebrates theend of the Bhikkhu's three months rains retreat and marks the Kathinamonth of robes , where lay people donate a set of robes to the Sangha. This also celebrates the day that Buddha began to teach the Abhidhamma!

The Buddha descending from the Tusita Level after having spent a rainsretreat there explaining the Abhidhamma to the assembled devas duringa single three months long speech! His biological mother Mahamaya, whodied 7 days after his birth, and was reborn there as a deva, was present. He is followed down by the deva rulers Sakka and Maha-Brahma.

The Kathina Ceremony of giving robes to the Maha-Sangha and receive blessing merit thereby!

On such Full-Moon Uposatha Poya Observance days:Any Lay Buddhist simply joins the Three Refuges and undertakes the Five Precepts like this: Newly bathed, shaved, white-clothed, with clean bare feet, one kneels at a shrine with a Buddha-statue, and bows first three times, so that feet, hands, elbows, knees & head touch the floor. Then, with joined palms at the heart, one recites these memorized lines in a loud, calm & steady voice:

As long as this life lasts: I hereby take refuge in the Buddha. I hereby take refuge in the Dhamma.I hereby take refuge in the Sangha. I hereby seek shelter in the Buddha for the 2nd time.I hereby seek shelter in the Dhamma for the 2nd time.I hereby seek shelter in the Sangha for the 2nd time.I hereby request protection from the Buddha for the 3rd time.I hereby request protection from the Dhamma for the 3rd time.I hereby request protection from the Sangha for the 3rd time.I will hereby respect these Three Jewels the rest of my life!

I accept to respect & undertake these 5 training rules: I hereby accept the training rule of avoiding all Killing.I hereby accept the training rule of avoiding all Stealing.I hereby accept the training rule of avoiding all Sexual Abuse.I hereby accept the training rule of avoiding all Dishonesty.I hereby accept the training rule of avoiding all Alcohol & Drugs.As long as this life lasts, I am thus protected by these 5 precepts...

Then, one keeps and protects these sacred vows better than one's own eyes & children!, since they protect you & all other beings much better than any army! They are the highest offer one can give in & to this world! So is the start towards Nibbana: the Deathless Element!This is the Noble Way to Peace, to Freedom, to Ease, to Happiness, initiated by Morality, developed further by Dhamma-Study and fulfilled by training of Meditation...

Today indeed is Pooya or Uposatha or observance day, where any lay Buddhist normally keeps even the Eight Precepts from sunrise until the next dawn... If any wish an official recognition by the Bhikkhu-Sangha, they may simply forward the lines starting with "I hereby ..." signed with name, date, town & country to me or join here. A public list of this new quite rapidly growing global Saddhamma-Sangha is set up here!

Because of greed one is reborn in eggs of geese, doves or as other animalsobsessed by great passion, like also in the womb of a rhinoceros...Because of ignorance one is reborn in the eggs of insects and worms. Because of hate one is reborn as snake. Because of pride and obduracy, one is reborn as lion. Because of arrogance & narcissism one is reborn in the wombs of donkeys and dogs. If miserly & discontented one createsrebirth as a monkey. If foulmouthed, faithless & shameless one is reborn as crow. Those flogging, chaining & injuring elephants, horses, & buffalos become spiders, scorpions, & stinging insects of cruel character. Those who are flesh-eating, angry, & fiery are reborn after death as tigers, jackals,cats, sharks, vultures, wolves & the like. Those who are generous givers,but angry & cruel become Nagas = snake-demons of great iddhi-power...Any deliberate wrongdoing in thought, speech and/or action can produce rebirth as animal! Therefore one should always shun all that is wrongdoing...

The Blessed Buddha once said this: Bhikkhus, there are these four things, that are actually so, invariable, not otherwise... What four?Suffering is actually so, invariable, not otherwise...The Cause of Suffering is actually so, invariable, not otherwise...The Ending of Suffering is actually so, invariable, and not otherwise...The Way to End all Suffering is actually so, invariable, not otherwise...These 4 Noble Truths are actually & exactly so, invariable, & not otherwise...Therefore, Bhikkhus, an effort should be dedicated now to really understand: All this is Suffering! An effort should be made much of to truly comprehend:Craving is the Cause of Suffering! An effort should be cultivated to realize:No Craving is the End of Suffering! Effort should be made to break through, reinforce, and develop: This Noble 8-fold Way, which ceases all Suffering...

The Blessed Buddha once said:These six things are to be remembered in order to Unite any Community in Harmony:Which six?1: Friendly Behaviour (metta-kaya-kamma=friendly bodily action) both in public and in private.2: Friendly Speech (metta-vaci-kamma=friendly verbal action) both in public and in private.3: Friendly Thought (metta-mano-kamma=friendly mental action) both in public and in private.4: Sharing of Gains (sadharana-bhogi=common wealth) even down to any single lump of food.5: Moral Harmony (sila-samannagato=uniform morality): All respect the same ethical rules.6: Harmony in Views (ditthi-samannagato=uniform attitude): All share the same general views.These 6 things are to be considered & remembered both for individual & social Harmony...

Comments:So we can sleep with open doors and dance with the children in our arms :-)

The characteristic of patience is acceptance, its function is to endure, and its manifestation is non-opposing tolerance! The cause of patience is understanding how things really are.. The effect of patience is calmtranquility despite presence of intensely stirring provocation..Patience of the will produces forgiving forbearance!Patience of the intellect produces faith, confidence and certainty!Patience of the body produces resolute and tenacious endurance!Internal tolerance of states within oneself is patient endurance...External tolerance of other beings is forbearance and forgiveness...

He who patiently protects himself, protects also all other beings! He who patiently protects all other beings, protects also himself!

Not from speaking much is one called clever.The patient one is free from anger and free from fear,only such steady persisting one, is rightly called clever... Dhammapada 258

Patient tolerance is the highest praxis...Nibbana is the supreme Bliss!So say all the Buddhas.Dhammapada 184

The innocent one, who has done nothing wrong,Who endures abuse, flogging and even imprisonment, Such one, armed with stamina, the great force of tolerance, Such stoic one, who self-possessed can accept, I call a Holy One!Dhammapada 399

One should follow those who are determined, tolerant, and enduring, intelligent, wise, diligent, clever, good-willed and evidently Noble. One shall stick to them as the moon remains in its regular orbit. Dhammapada 208

Friends, even if bandits were to cut you up, savagely, limb by limb, with a two-handled saw, you should not get angry, but do my bidding: Remain pervading them and all others with a friendly Awareness imbued with an all-embracing good-will, kind, rich, expansive, and immeasurable! Free from hostility, free from any ill will. Always remembering this very Simile of the Saw is indeed how you should train yourselves. Majjhima Nikaya 21

The five ways of removing irritating annoyance:Bhikkhus, there are these five ways of removing annoyance, by which any irritation can be entirely removed by a Bhikkhu, when it arises in him.What are these five ways?1: Friendliness can be maintained towards an irritating person or state..2: Understanding can be undertaken towards an irritating person or state..3: On-looking Equanimity can be kept towards an irritating person or state.. 4: One can forget and ignore the irritating person, mental or physical state.. 5: Ownership of Kamma of the irritating person can be reflected upon thus: This good person is owner of his actions, inherit the result his actions, is indeed born of his actions and only he is responsible for his actions be they good or bad. This too is how annoyance with the irksome can be instantly removed. These are the five ways of removing annoyance, and by which anyirritation can be entirely removed in a friend, exactly when it arises... Anguttara Nikaya V 161

Buddha to his son Rahula: Develop an Imperturbable Mind like the elements:Rahula, develop a mind like earth, then contacts of arisen like and dislike will not obsess your mind! Rahula, on the earth is dumped both the pure and the impure: excreta, urine, saliva, pus, blood, but the earth does not detest any of those... Even and exactly so make your mind stable like the earth! Rahula, develop a mind like water, then contacts of arisen pleasure and pain will not seize your mind. Rahula with water both the pure and the impure are cleaned... Washed away with water are excreta, urine, saliva, pus, and blood, yet the water does not despise any of that! Even so make the mind fluid and adaptable like the water! Rahula, develop a mind like fire, then the contacts of any arisen attraction or aversion will neither consume, nor hang on to your mind! Rahula, fire burns both the pure and the impure, burns excreta, urine, saliva, pus, and blood, yet the fire does not loathe any of that.. In the same manner refine the mind into a tool like an all consuming and purifying fire! Rahula, develop a mind similar to space, then contacts of arisen delight and frustration does neither take hold of, nor remain in your mind. Space does not settle anywhere! Similarly make the mind unsettled and unestablished like open space. When you expand mind like space, contacts of delight and frustration will neither be able to dominate, nor obsess your mind...Majjhima Nikaya 62

The Blessed Buddha once said:Bhikkhus & friends: There is one contemplation which when often practised and much developed leads to the complete turning away from the world, to detachment, to stilling, to ceasing, to peace, to final penetrating knowledge, to Enlightenment, and thus to Nibbana...Any Noble Disciple who by progress have understood the true Dhamma dwells frequently in this state. Which is that one contemplation? It is reflecting over the qualities of the Buddha exactly like this:Worthy, honourable & perfectly self-Enlightened is the Buddha! Consummated in knowledge and behaviour, totally transcended, expert in all dimensions, knower of all worlds, unsurpassable trainer of those who can be tamed, both teacher & guide of gods as well as of humans, blessed, exalted, awakened, and perfectly enlightened is the Buddha! Source: AN 1:16.1 + 6:10

How does a Bhikkhu dwell pervading one direction with his mind endued with compassion? Just as he would feel compassion on seeing an unlucky, unfortunate person, so he pervades all beings with boundless compassion! Therefore first of all, on eyeing a wretched man, deplorable, unfortunate, in every way a fit object for compassion, horrid, reduced to utter misery,with hands and feet cut off, sitting in the shelter for the weak & helplesswith an empty dirty pot placed before him, with maggots in all his wounds,moaning, compassionate pity should be felt for him in this way: This being has been reduced to misery: If only he could be freed from his suffering!Similarly too should a Bhikkhu whose meditation subject is compassion also arouse compassion for an evil-wrong-doing person, even if he is happy now:Though this poor wretch is now happy, cheerful, & enjoying his wealth, butstill, since he has neglected to do even one single good deed, he can come to experience untold suffering anytime after a downfall to the states of loss!Such infinitely compassionate pity he feels towards all beings and especiallyboth towards himself, the dear friend, the neutral one, & the hostile person,thereby breaking down the wrong attitude barrier separating these objects.Vbh 273, Vism I 315

What is the proximate cause of Pity?The proximate cause of Compassionate Pity (Karuna), which induces this fine mental state, is seeing, knowing and understanding the HELPLESSNESSof most beings, since they do the wrong that cause their misery influencedby ignorance, which blind and obstruct their understanding of right & wrong,and influenced by greed, lust and desire, which bind and drag them despite their struggles, and influenced by hate, aversion and opposition, which push and burn them from inside. Out of self-control they are thus bound to commit wrong repeatedly and thus later experience the resulting downfall!

One should often contemplate the inevitable fact of DEATH!Why so? Because it makes one approach Nibbana – The Deathless Dimension!Neglecting thinking about death makes one accumulate future rebirths,and thereby also future rounds of ageing, decay and inevitable death!Considering death is therefore quite advantageous, but not pleasant…Neglecting death is therefore quite disadvantageous, though more pleasant…One looses all (again & again) at the moment of death including this body… Death itself is painless and should not be feared. Life is painful & dreadful!The only way to escape the fact of death is not to be (re)-born…Only this is Peace ! Only this is Freedom from all future suffering!Only this - in itself - is lasting Happiness !

The Blessed Buddha once said:In the seen is merely the process of seeing...In the heard is merely the process of hearing...In the sensed is merely the process of sensing...In the thought is merely the process of thinking...So knowing, you will not be connected 'with that'...So disconnected you will not be absorbed 'into that'...So neither 'with that', nor 'within that' you are not 'by that' sensation!When there is no 'You' inferred or conjectured by that very sensation,then 'You' are neither 'here', 'there', 'both', 'beyond', nor 'in between'.

On realizing the importance of this incident the Blessed One exclaimed:Where neither solidity, fluidity, heat nor motion find any footing,there no sun, moon nor star ever shines. There is neither any light,yet nor is there any darkness! When the Noble, through stilling ofall construction, through quieting of all mental formation, directlyexperiences this, then is he freed from both form & formlessness,then is he released from both pleasure and pain ...

Comments:There is no-one 'who' senses, nor is there any 'substance' that is sensed, even though the process of sensing occurs! Seeing is just a selfless event of contact between the eye, the object & visual consciousness. Neither is any 'person', nor any 'observer' involved nor inferred just by this seeing! No subject or 'I' is thereby created, just because there is an object, or just because there occurs the impersonal, automatic process of sensing... Sensing itself, thus neither create any object, nor any subject, just as a camera - though making an image - neither creates the object, nor does the camera create the photographer! Thus can neither any 'substance', nor 'reality out there' per se be ascribed to neither object, nor subject:Just because there is a picture, one cannot by that in itself infer or even ascribe any existence to neither the object, nor the picture-maker! Both may actually be artificial, or of past existence and not real anymore ...The fact that there is an image projected, does not per se imply, in or by itself, that any-one actually is 'looking in' or 'is behind' the camera … 'By that' perception no 'perceiver' is thereby instrumentally present or created... So the 'personal entity' we assume, suppose, deduce, expect & believe to enjoy our experience, is merely a mental construct, a habitual idea, a concept, & not a reality... The passive impersonal process of sensing, perceiving and experiencing cannot thereby be 'instrumental' for neither creating, nor inferring any 'being in existence'. The fact of this enigmaticyet fundamental 'selflessness' is far the most essential core of the unique Buddha-Dhamma... Outmost important to grasp, yet subtle, counterintuitive and thereby difficult & somewhat 'nasty' to comprehend. Please keep ontrying, since this central Anatta doctrine is the opener, releaser & freer of any mind. No-one is 'inside' the conditions that arise, cease & pass by!Being hopelessly in love with an imagined idea of 'I=EGO' & 'World=Real' is both fatal, tragic and sardonically comic... Hehehe

Anathapindika was a millionaire banker (setthi) of Savatthi, who donatedthe famous Jetavana Monastery to the Buddha, the Dhamma and his Sangha!He had to cover the entire ground with gold to pay for it to prince Jetakumara!

Venerable Sariputta thanked the householder Anathapindika with these verses:When one has faith in the Tathagata, Unshakable and well established,And good conduct built on virtue, dear to the Noble ones and praised; When one has confidence in the Sangha and a view that has been rectified,They say, that one is not poor then, that one's life has not been in vain!Therefore the person of intelligence, remembering the Buddha's Teaching,Should be devoted to faith and purity, to confidence in & vision if the Dhamma!Just as the many rivers flow downstream and finally reach the mighty ocean,As these rivers carry their waters to the sea. the great boundless mass of water,Exactly so do the streams of merit reach any donor, any good & wise man, giver of food, drink, & clothes, provider of housing, beds, seats, and coverlets...Just as the rivers carry their waters to the sea!One who has Faith in the Three Jewels, who purifies his behaviour by MoralityHaving given to those, who seek the absolute, is Really Rich - most wealthy - even without a penny!

Anathapindika was a millionaire banker (setthi) of Savatthi, who became famous because of his unparalleled generosity to the Buddha. As kammic result, he was later reborn in the Tusita heaven! The place of those who are content http://What-Buddha-Said.net/library/DPP ... indika.htm